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By Sally Watson, 21 September 1999 00:15

NEWS Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is the latest buzzword in the industry and one of the many companies lauding CRM as a business saviour is Cap Gemini. But according to Phillip Blackwell, Cap Gemini's CRM expert, it's much more than a marketing phrase. "Plainly there is a lot of jargon, but I think the advantage is that CRM is becoming the de facto term for a myriad of other jargon terms like customer care and value management," he said. Cap Gemini is so sure of CRM's benefits it has created a board game to help its clients understand the concept. And according to Blackwell it requires more than a simple software installation to make the most of CRM. "It requires a fundamental mindset change within the organisation," he claims. One company which has put the theory into practise is petrochemicals giant, Shell. With over 10 million calls to deal with each year, the company was keen to improve the way it treated its customers. According to customer service programme director, Toby Detter, the CRM system installation took only a few weeks, but the real work is still going on: "It really takes a change in attitudes, organisation and the way we're working. And that is sustained by a system." Detter issued a stark warning for anyone not convinced by the theory. "I think it's the key for a company to sustain business in the future. You probably don't need be there in the next two years but I'd like to see a company sustain a living in the market if they're not there in the next five." To see the full News in View: Customer Relationship Management Uncovered, tune into the Knowledge Management channel.